More than 800 attend Modoc War documentary, discussion 

By LEE JUILLERAT 

H&N Regional Editor

October 29, 2011

     A war that ended 138 years ago still sparks interest.

   More than 850 people packed the Ross Ragland Theater Thursday night   for the premiere screening of “Oregon Experience: The Modoc War.”

   Chiloquin High School graduate Kami Horton produced the hour-long documentary film, which will air Nov. 8 on Southern Oregon Public Broadcasting.  

   “It was gratifying to see so much interest, not just in the film but in the panel discussion,” said Todd Kepple, Klamath County Museums manager, referring to the post-film program attended by more than 200 people.   

   Along with Horton, panelists included Klamath Tribes public affairs director Taylor David, tribal member and former Chiloquin High School history teacher Lynn Sconchin, Oregon Institute of Technology history professor Mark Clark, Malin Historical Society President Ryan Bartholomew and Lava Beds National Monument Superintendent Dave Kruse.

   “It really encapsulates all the recent understanding and scholarship about the Modoc War. She did her homework.” Clark said of Horton. “I thought it was reasonably balanced.”

   Bartholomew said he believes the film provided new insights, such as the emphasis on the ghost dance and how Modocs lived in bands and were not united as a tribe.  

   “It’s pretty much an impossible task to tell a Modoc War story in an hour,” he said. “Kami did an incredible job.”

   Kruse called the hour-long panel discussion that followed the film informative.

   During the talk, panelists said support for the war largely came from Jesse Carr, Jesse Applegate and other absentee landowners who didn’t deal with Modocs on a day-to-day basis.

   Clark said his perspective changed when he visited Captain Jack’s Stronghold, one of the main war sites, during the winter.

   “It just totally changed my perception of what it must have been like,” he said.

   “The Modoc War is complicated so it’s difficult to understand,” Kepple said. “I hope this sets the stage for further openness to learning about various perspectives, not just about the Modoc War, but for other issues affecting the Basin.”